Attorney appointed for man charged in chase

WOODSTOCK – William Walter Grim Jr. appeared in Shenandoah County Circuit Court on Wednesday for the first time since authorities arrested him last week and charged him with numerous offenses linked to a southbound chase on Interstate 81 that ended near Staunton.

Law enforcement officials say the chase involved gunfire from Augusta County deputies; Grim ramming Augusta County deputies’ police cruisers with his car; and a member of the Shenandoah County Sheriff’s Office struck by Grim’s car as the defendant tried to flee. Augusta County Sheriff Donald Smith says Grim was subdued by a deputy using a Taser after other deputies with an extended baton and a rifle broke the windows on Grim’s car.

The chase began in New Market after Shenandoah County deputies tried to serve Grim, 60, of Toms Brook, with warrants charging him with violating a protective order and obstruction of justice. Authorities say the deputies confronted Grim at a convenience store in New Market where he fled after they tried to serve the warrants on him.

Court records say speeds reached up to 80 mph in heavy rain before the Shenandoah County sheriff’s deputies broke off the chase.

Grim, who is being held in the Middle River Regional Jail in Staunton, appeared by video in Shenandoah County Circuit Court on Wednesday. Judge Dennis L. Hupp determined Grim was eligible for court-appointed counsel and chose Michael Araj, of Staunton, to represent the defendant.

The charges against Grim in Shenandoah County include eluding police and assault on a law enforcement officer, both felonies, and obstructing justice and driving too fast for conditions, two misdemeanors.

Grim’s next appearance in Circuit Court is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sept. 14.